Cooking Confidential

Master Chef and Top Teacher Linda Carucci Tells you how to Nail Every Meal

edited by Michaela Jarvis

Published:

You’re a good cook. Or maybe just an OK one. But the truth is, you
would kill for a list of tips that would help you really light a fire
every time you turn on the stove. How do the pros do it? They learn
things in culinary school that just aren’t in that darn recipe you’re
staring at so intently as you simmer and stir.

But thanks to Linda Carucci, author of the brand-new Cooking School
Secrets for Real World Cooks (Chronicle Books, 2005), you too can be in
the know. Here, Carucci shares the top 10 secrets from her book,
gleaned from her years of experience in the world of food. Her résumé
includes a stint as the dean of the California Culinary Academy and
winning the 2002 Cooking Teacher of the Year award from the International
Association of Culinary Professionals. The Montclair resident is
currently the Julia Child Curator of Food Arts at Copia in Napa.

So next time you have a dinner party, be prepared. There will be no polite, “Oh, this is delicious, Sharon.” You’re gonna rock.

Now for Linda’s tips:
When I cook, I’m on a mission. My goal is to bring out the absolute best flavor. Here are 10 easy tips that will do just that.
1. Taste as you cook.
Cooking without tasting is like slapping new
tires on a car and driving off without an alignment. As you taste,
season with salt to bring out the inherent flavors in the food,
amplifying them and bringing them into balance—and making you look like
a culinary genius. Use Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt; I love its pure,
clean flavor.

2. Season meat, poultry, and fish before cooking.
If you use salt,
spices, and herbs before cooking meat, poultry, and fish, you’ll be
rewarded with incomparable flavor and restaurant-quality savoriness.
Experiment by salting one chop or burger before cooking and another
after cooking. I promise you’ll taste the difference.

3. Salt cooking water so it tastes like the ocean. Doing so will season
whatever you boil, blanch, or poach as it cooks—and result in more
flavorful pasta, potatoes, vegetables, chicken, and shellfish.

4. Cook with the seasons.
Veggies and
fruits are naturally more
flavorful and vibrant tasting—and less expensive—when they’re in
season. We may be able to find fresh corn on the cob in stores in the
middle of December or brussels sprouts in early July, but the time it
takes to get them from a far-off field to your kitchen translates into
diminished—and sometimes bitter—flavor.

5. Buy organic.
If you haven’t compared the taste of freshly harvested organic carrots or broccoli with their conventionally grown
counterparts, you’re in for a pleasant surprise. (An added benefit:
Organically grown produce packs more nutrients, thanks to the rich soil
it’s grown in and the absence of nutrient-depleting pesticides and
herbicides.) The same goes for poultry, lamb, and pork.

6. Sauté onions slowly.
When a recipe directs you to sauté onions,
don’t take any shortcuts to hasten the process. Take a few extra
minutes to slowly coax out the natural sugars over lower heat until the
onions are meltingly soft and lightly browned. They’ll provide an
incomparable foundation of flavor for your soups, stews, braises,
sauces, risottos, and curries.

7. Add butter.
To finish soups, sauces, and stews with great flavor and
the light-catching sheen you see on sauces in fine French restaurants,
use a technique called monter au beurre (“mohn’-tay oh burr”): Whisk in
a chunk of butter when the cooking is complete.

8. Make sure it’s unsalted butter.
Salt is used in butter both as a preservative and to mask undesirable
flavors in the cream; unsalted butter is made from the freshest cream
and has a cleaner flavor. Whole Foods 365 Organic unsalted butter is priced right and tastes great.

9. Add a splash of extra virgin olive oil.
Take a tip from
Mediterranean cooks and drizzle extra virgin olive oil over a bowl of
pasta or beans just before serving. If you’re trying to cut back on
fat, you’ll get more flavor from the olive oil (or butter, for that
matter) if you use less early on in the recipe and add some just before
serving instead.

10. Make sure it’s high-quality oil.
Use a mild-tasting extra virgin
olive oil—Bariani is my workhorse oil—in cooking and to prepare
delicate sauces like pesto or mayonnaise. A bold-tasting, Tuscan-style
oil is better suited for dressing salads and vegetables or for
drizzling over a finished dish.

E-mail Linda Carucci at linda@LCKitchen.com, or visit her website at
www.LCKitchen.com for recipes and a schedule of book signings and
cooking classes.

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Faces

In celebration of Berkeley Repertory Theatre’s outgoing artistic director, Tony Taccone, 475 Bay Area arts supporters gathered at the Ritz-Carlton, San Francisco for a memorable evening. The festivities honored Taccone’s 22 years with the nonprofit as a visionary leader, and more than $1 million
was raised in support of the theater’s artistic endeavors and programs. Bob the Drag Queen performed “Somewhere Over the Rainbow,” and Rita Moreno sang “This Is All I Ask” from Rita Moreno: Life Without Makeup, which Taccone wrote.

The Lafayette Library and Learning Center Foundation (LLLCF) hosted its annual fundraiser, where book lovers had the chance to roam the library after hours with friends and family. Filled with revelry, dancing, and dessert, the event raised $450,000 for the library and much-needed improvements to the Children’s Area deck.

The East Bay SPCA’s benefit celebrated the many donors and members of the community who take part in helping animals. Guests toured the Oakland facility and met animals that are up for adoption, while savoring an array of food, craft beer, and wine. All proceeds from the auctions went toward the SPCA’s services.

Guests dressed up in storybook attire and experienced a magical evening at Children’s Fairyland in Oakland. At the 24th annual gala, attendees appreciated enchanting decor, a delicious dinner, delectable desserts, and various auction items. This year’s sold-out event was the theme park’s most successful bash yet, raising more than $250,000. All proceeds help Children’s Fairyland continue to provide children with a place that fosters imagination, encourages creativity, and prompts a desire to learn.

At this yearly black-tie event benefiting the Food Bank of Contra Costa and Solano, attendees gathered at the Diablo Country Club for a delightful evening and enjoyed a three-course dinner, drinks, dancing, and a live auction. All proceeds went directly to the Food Bank, which has been providing food to one in eight residents in Contra Costa and Solano counties for more than 40 years.

Richmond’s Making Waves Academy welcomed two-time Grammy Award winner LL COOL J to the school to have a discussion with the students. The recording artist spoke about the importance of education, his path to becoming an entertainer, and the impact his upbringing had on his success. At Making Waves, 5th- to 12th-grade students receive a rigorous, holistic education to prepare them for college and beyond.

In honor of its 30th anniversary, the John Muir Land Trust hosted a very special incarnation of its annual gathering. Conservation leaders and thousands of supporters came together at the John Muir National Historic Site in Martinez to celebrate with live music, fine wine, gourmet food, and an auction.

This one-night-only fundraiser at the Fox Theater in Oakland ultimately raised more than $3 million for UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital, thanks to its all-star lineup of performers and speakers, which included Ryan Tedder of One Republic and actress Helen Hunt.

The Rotary Club of Lafayette hosted a benefit for the nonprofit New Day for Children. The Alamo-based organization works to aid the recovery of American girls rescued from sex trafficking through a variety of services, including psychological, educational, and other restorative programs. The fundraising event included a cocktail reception, a sit-down dinner, and a live auction.

Fans of the Lindsay Wildlife Experience got wild at the museum and wildlife hospital’s annual soiree. Held at Danville’s Blackhawk Museum, the night saw some of Lindsay’s animal ambassadors join the mix as guests danced to music by The Cheeseballs following a full dinner catered by Scott’s Seafood Walnut Creek and both live and silent auctions. Funds from the event support Lindsay’s goal of connecting people with wildlife by saving animals’ lives and providing up-close animal encounters for visitors.

For the past 18 years, Concord’s Monument Impact has been a force in the city, serving its vulnerable immigrant and refugee communities. Recently, the nonprofit center hosted its Stronger Together gala to celebrate the work that volunteers, local businesses, unions, and others have done to support immigrants in the East Bay. Among those honored for their contributions were volunteer English tutor (and onetime San Francisco Giant) Rob Andrews, former board member Margaret Hanlon-Gradie, and John Muir Health.